


Someone in the Crowd

by midheavenn



Series: Ensemble Stars!! [4]
Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Actors, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-07 22:40:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,126
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26595379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/midheavenn/pseuds/midheavenn
Summary: In which Anzu is finally noticed by her favorite actor, just not in the way she thought she would be.“I… um… I was just worried, are… ahem, are your vocal cords okay?”
Relationships: Anzu/Hidaka Hokuto
Series: Ensemble Stars!! [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1930348
Kudos: 12





	Someone in the Crowd

**Author's Note:**

> Been wanting to write this AU for while, now. I just really love the idea of actor Hokke falling in love with his fan. Also in love with actor Hokke in general, so this is also self-indulgent, in a way. I hope I got his characterization right! The same goes for Wataru! I apologize if any characters are OOC, and for any grammar or spelling mistakes, since English is not my first language. Happy reading!

Hokuto stood backstage along with the other actors and actresses that acted in the play. He watched as the crowd gave them a standing ovation, and turned to the people around him.

“It’s time. Curtain call!” he told them, his voice ringing out clearly despite the roaring cheers of the audience.

He stepped onstage, leading the others, since he’s the lead actor of this play.

He, along with everyone else, took a bow, thanking the audience graciously.

Some fans cheered his name. “ _Hokuto!_ ”

But one always stood out to him. The loudest, clearest female voice cut through the air.

“ _HOKUTOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ ”

A small smile made its way to his face. Whenever he acts in a play, he would always hear that voice. He had learned to recognize the voice, and appreciate it.

He’s been trying to find the owner of that voice, of course. Partly to thank whoever it is for their support. But mostly because he is considerably worried for their vocal cords.

He thanked the other actors starring in this play for their hardwork, and things along those lines.

“Another play well-done, Hokuto-kun.” a male with long pale blue colored hair told him.

“Ah, _Buchou._ Thank you for your hardwork.” the raven-haired male greeted.

Wataru simply hummed, a pleased expression on his face.

“I see that fan of yours is as loyal as ever, Hokuto-kun.”

Hokuto was about to walk away, and paused at Wataru’s statement.

“Yes, I’m getting quite worried for them.” he replied.

“It would only make sense, I’m surprised her voice isn’t strained.”

Hokuto blinked. _Her?_

“Her? How do you know it’s a her? I thought assuming their gender by their voice is-”

“I’ve seen her around, Hokuto-kun.” Wataru told him, his usual mischievous smile gracing his features.

Hokuto was about to press him for further information, but Wataru made his usual dramatic exit, leaving Hokuto in the dark.

“Hokke! That was so cool! You were so shiny and sparkly onstage!”

“The play was a drama about an angel who fell from angelhood so he can be with the human he’s in love with, but the woman has someone else, Akehoshi-kun…” Makoto said.

Subaru pouted childishly, leaning closer to Makoto. “But Hokke looked so shiny with his angel costume, Ukki!”

Mao laughed before joining the conversation. “Well, I think we can all agree that Hokuto was a great Nathaniel. You really fit the role, Hokuto.” 

“Thank you, Isara. And you too, Akehoshi, Yuuki. Thank you for coming to watch.” he told them gratefully.

Hokuto fell silent as Subaru continued to explain to Makoto and Mao how Hokuto looked so sparkly and shiny in the play.

Makoto shifted his attention from Subaru and onto Hokuto. “Hidaka-kun, what is it?” he asked, eyebrows knit in worry.

Hokuto looked up to meet his friends’ worried looks.

“Ah, it’s… it’s nothing.” he lied.

The three noticed, of course. But they didn’t push him.

“Let’s go home, then?” Mao suggested with a smile.

The others chorused their agreement and they headed to their shared flat. 

“Hokke, you’ve been so quiet the entire time.” Subaru remarked as they ate dinner.

Mao gave the ravenette a worried glance. “Really, Hokuto. What is it?”

“It’s just… do you think the one fan who always screams my name really loudly is fine?”

Subaru, Makoto, and Mao can only blink at Hokuto’s question.

“That’s what’s been worrying you?” Mao asked him, dumbfounded.

Makoto laughed nervously. “That’s so like you, Hidaka-kun…” 

Meanwhile, Subaru looked confused, tapping his chin thoughtfully, before snapping his fingers.

“Oh! You mean the girl who screams ‘ _HOKUTOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ ’ really loudly?”

Hokuto nodded in response.

“I mean, she should be fine. She keeps doing it every show you’re in. She’s probably fine, Hokke.”

“Akehoshi-kun has a point. If she keeps doing it, she’s probably fine.”

Mao offered Hokuto a sincere smile.

“If you’re so worried, Hokuto, try looking for her.”

“Looking for her?” he asked back, sapphire blue eyes widening.

“Well… yeah. You’re bound to see her sooner or later.”

“Huh.” was the only word that came out Hokuto’s lips.

Huh, indeed. He never really considered the idea.

Wataru did say he has seen the girl around, so maybe.

“Hokke, closing night is in 2 days, right?” Subaru asked excitedly, leaning forward.

Hokuto backed away from the redhead, but nodded anyway.

“And you said she would always come to every show you’re in, right? Then, try finding her on closing night!”

He might indeed.

\---

Anzu remembered vividly when she fell in love with Hokuto’s acting, and possibly, Hokuto himself.

She wouldn’t call her feelings for the theater actor love, though. How she feels about his acting? Definitely love. But to think she’s fallen in love with him is absurd. She has never talked to him, after all.

But one day, after one particularly long day of classes, she walked by a theater. A poster was on the theater’s doors, and it was advertising a play.

It was apparently a modern retelling of the 1001 Nights. Numerous actors and actresses were on the poster, with a light blue-haired man as the lead. But her eyes were drawn somewhere else.

Jet black hair and deep blue eyes. _This actor is pretty handsome,_ she thought.

She glanced at the names below. He was playing the role of Aladdin.

_‘Hokuto Hidaka as Aladdin’_

Opening night is tomorrow. Well, she’s intrigued, so she might as well buy a ticket.

My God, was it the best decision of her life.

She instantly fell in love with his acting.

The way his voice expresses emotions so well, and the gestures he made really helped sell the act. His facial expressions were on point too.

His acting had a way of drawing people in, making people look exactly where he wants them to.

Well, she had to admit that lead, Wataru Hibiki’s acting is good as well. But she didn’t feel for it as strongly as she did for Hokuto’s.

As she exited the theater, the actors and actresses stood near the doors, thanking their audience for coming to watch them.

“Amazing! Thank you very much for watching us!”

Anzu turned to see Wataru, pulling out a rose out of… you know what, she doesn’t even want to know, and handing it to a blushing female.

The brunette heard a sigh from near her.

“That Masked Pervert really needs to stop flirting with audience members.” a male voice muttered.

When she checked to see who it was, she froze. In front of her, was Hokuto Hidaka himself.

Anzu stayed frozen. Her mind was telling her to move, say something, anything!

Hokuto’s gaze shifted to her. “Ah, sorry. I must’ve gotten carried away.”

The male bowed slightly as he took both of Anzu’s hands in his. “Thank you for coming to watch us. I really appreciate it.”

Anzu’s face flushed at his actions, before sputtering out a ‘you’re welcome!’ and something about watching him again soon.

She walked out as quickly as she could, heart pounding in her chest.

The ghost of his cold yet comforting palms lingered on her hands.

She felt electric when he touched her.

 _This is stupid,_ she thought. _He’s an actor, aren’t they supposed to give fanservice?_

Yet, she still found herself with butterflies in her stomach.

It was like her body moved on its own, after that.

She became a regular at that theater, all because she wanted to watch Hokuto.

She had grown to love the other actors too, but her favorite remained the same.

And it became a habit of hers, to cheer for him as loud as she possibly can on every show he’s in.

\---

Closing night. Hokuto’s personal favorite.

Closing night feels so different than the other showings, since it’s usually far more celebrated, and because of the momentum from the nights before.

Hokuto feels like he’s dancing on air. He’s been doing so good these past few days. He was very grateful that he was chosen as the lead, and if he’s being completely honest, he’s going to be sad to see Nathaniel go.

It always feels like a whole different world when it’s closing night.

“Five minutes ‘til showtime!” a crew member shouted.

Hokuto looked at the audience from behind the curtains. He can only make out silhouettes, since the room is dark. He knew one thing is for sure, though.

Somewhere out there, was that one fan he so desperately wants to know.

He spends a few more minutes thinking, until the crew member shouted again. “One minute! Positions, everyone!”

He and his co-lead stepped onto the stage.

He took a deep breath, inhaling and exhaling.

His eyes watched as the curtain slowly raised. It’s showtime.

Anzu still watched in awe.

She had practically memorized each character’s line, but as expected of a theater troupe like them, there were going to be some ad-libs.

Every breath, every gesture, every word draws the audience’s attention.

She watched the scene where Nathaniel watches the human girl he fell in love with happily talks to her soon-to-be husband.

Hokuto, or Nathaniel laughed quietly, tears streaking down his face.

“I did say I would do anything to see her happy.” Hokuto said, saying his line with polished delivery.

“I guess I never considered that her happiness wasn’t with me.”

Nathaniel looked up at the sky wistfully, laughing once more.

“Castiel, you must think I’m incredibly stupid, huh? I can hear your voice, even from all the way down here.”

Anzu feels herself tearing up. Nathaniel’s monologue always manages to get her.

Nathaniel smiled sadly, watching the girl.

“I don’t regret it, though. I will never regret falling from angelhood to watch her more closely.”

Anzu brought out her tissues, wiping her tears.

“I’ve been an angel for millenniums, and never once did I feel like this. Humans are quite complex, indeed.”

Nathaniel turned to walk away, leaving his past, and the girl of his dreams behind.

“Thank you for teaching me what love really means, Annalisa.”

As Nathaniel walked out of sight, the curtain slowly falls.

The audience was silence for a moment, which _horrified_ Hokuto.

Before erupting into loud cheers, giving the cast a standing ovation.

Hokuto didn’t even bother hiding his relief. Thank the good Lord, he _is_ a good actor after all.

“Curtain call!” he yelled to the cast members.

They all joined him onstage, bowing and thanking the audience once more.

Anzu was still crying and wiping her tears. Something about Hokuto’s acting was really different tonight.

Hokuto’s eyes frantically searched the crowd.

_Where is she? I don’t hear her. Oh, no. Maybe she couldn’t make it tonight-_

“ _HOKUTOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!_ ”

His gaze was drawn to someone in the middle row, a girl with brown hair and what seemed to be blue-green eyes.

 _She’s pretty,_ he thought to himself. He found the mystery fan now.

\---

“Uh…”

Anzu turned to see who it was, only to come face to face with Hokuto Hidaka.

“I… um… I was just worried, are… ahem, are your vocal cords okay?”

The girl blinked in confusion. “Eh?”

Hokuto cleared his throat again, cheeks flushing. _This is embarrassing._

“It’s just that I noticed you’re always cheering for me the loudest, and I can hear you clearly even with all the clapping, so I was just wondering if your voice is okay after all that.”

Anzu turned about fifty shades of red, coughing slightly.

“A-ah! Well, I’m fine. My voice is okay, my throat doesn’t really hurt that much.”

“I- I see. That’s… good. I was worried.”

Hokuto extended a hand, but it felt really stupid, so he pulled his hand back.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude.” his voice uncharacteristically wavering. “I… also wanted to thank you for always supporting me and cheering me on.”

“Of course, you don’t need to thank me for that. You’re a great actor, Hidaka-kun. I’m a regular at this theater now, thanks to your acting. Hibiki-san is a good actor as well, and so are the others. But I can’t say I feel as strongly as I do for their acting as I do for you.” Anzu told him.

Hokuto opened his mouth to reply when the theater manager called out to him.

“Hidaka-kun! Hibiki-kun says he needs to talk to you.”

Hokuto nodded in understanding and gave Anzu an apologetic look.

“Sorry, I wish we could talk longer. Are you sure your voice is really okay?” he asked one last time.

Anzu nodded. That got a smile out of the male.

“I see. And if you don’t mind, may I know your name?”

“Anzu.”

“Alright. Thank you again, Anzu. I’ll see you on our next play. And call me Hokuto.”

Anzu bidded him goodbye and walked home with a smile.

She wasn’t just someone in the crowd anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> Whoo, this one was a long one. Don't forget to leave kudos and comments are highly appreciated! Thanks for reading!   
> Follow me on my Twitter! @midheavenn1


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